By IANS
Ahmedabad : The Congress party leads in fielding the highest number of candidates with criminal background in the first phase of the Gujarat assembly poll this month, according to an independent watchdog’s analysis.
In all, 117 out of the total 668 candidates for the first phase of Dec 11 face criminal charges, said the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR)
As many as 28 out of 81 Congress candidates or 34.57 percent had criminal cases pending against them, Jagdeep Chhokar, an Indian Institute of Management professor and founder of the ADR, told reporters here Tuesday.
The types of cases against them included murder, attempt to murder, threats to kill, kidnapping and other crimes like dacoity, assault, rioting, arson, jailbreak and financial fraud.
For the ruling Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), the percentage was 18.4 percent as 16 out of its 87 had a criminal background.
Both the BJP and Congress have given the ticket to nine sitting legislators each with pending criminal cases.
The Janata Dal-United (JD-U) has six out of its 18 candidates with criminal past, while the Bahujan Samaj party (BSP) has put up 15 candidates with criminal background.
The analysis was based on facts disclosed by the candidates themselves in affidavits filed along with their nomination papers, Chhokar said.
It reveals that there are 51 millionaire candidates in the 87 constituencies going to poll in the first phase. However, five of them did not even have permanent account number (PAN).
Members of the Gujarat Initiative for Right to Information (GIRTI), a forum of organisations and activists, would fan out from Wednesday to the 87 constituencies to better inform the voters, Chhokar said.